Dreaming Wide Awake
by KS Claw
Summary: Kozmotis Pitchiner is retired from the military, and now he just wants to spend the time he can with his teenaged daughter, while making a living as the occasional local handyman. But things start to get strange. Kozmotis has strange dreams about black horses, of a woman who may or may not be his daughter, and a strange feeling that things in reality are not quite as they should be
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Based on a prompt on the RoTG Kinkmeme

**Full summary:**

_Kozmotis Pitchiner is retired from the military, and now he just wants to spend the time he can with his teenaged daughter, while making a living as the occasional local handyman, and a bestseller author on books about military history. At the same time, he has his more eccentric neighbors to deal with, teenaged boys flirting with his daughter, and a lovely teashop owner and her sisters._

_But things start to get strange. Kozmotis has strange dreams about black horses, of a woman who may or may not be his daughter, and a strange feeling that things in reality are not quite as they should be._

* * *

Prologue

_We are such stuff_  
_As dreams are made on, and our little life _  
_Is rounded with a sleep._  
~The Tempest (4.1.168-170)

He dreams of wild horses, black as the night with pelts that seem to shimmer like star dust in the right light, while their eyes glow gold like lanterns.

Their bodies seem ethereal, their manes like wisps of smoke, but they are solid and the massive creatures that bite and kick, rearing above him as they scream, their shrieks echoing through the dark as their hooves flail. He tries to cry out himself, covering himself protectively with his arms, but he knows it is a hopeless task somehow...

Something startles the horses, something that makes them tear off, shrieking as they do so and leaving him alone on the ground. He is bleeding and gasping, his breath coming off as wet and rattling in his chest, and every part of his body feels as if it is on fire. _'How strange,'_ a part of him thinks. _'You shouldn't be able to feel pain in your dreams.'_

She emerges out of the shadows, tall and strong and proud, clad in flowing emerald, her hair long and wild like a mass of storm clouds. With her is a small and round figure, and he somehow knows that this is the reason that the horses fled.

Her storm grey eyes narrow harshly as they look at the smaller figure, her expression one of cold anger.

"This is what you have reduced him to," she says coldly, her voice sounding like the far away rumble of thunder. "You know what you have to do, to make up for your mistakes."

The smaller figure seems to try to object, but she will hear none of it.

"You **OWE **me, Mansnoozie!" She snarls, her teeth bared like fangs. The golden figure seems to slump in defeat.

With a curt nod, she kneels down and moves to pick him up, her grip amazingly gentle as she straightens up. He hisses in pain, as the move jars a broken rib, and she adjusts her grip so that he rests comfortably in her arms.

"Dream." She tells him gently, her voice now soft and soothing, like a summer breeze through the trees. "And when you wake, I will be with you."

The golden figure seems to sigh, but he can't figure out if it is from defeat or annoyance. The figure tosses a solid handful of golden dust in his direction, and he feels as if it invades every part of him, every sense, every bit of visible skin... his body feels heavy, and he senses himself slump in her embrace, sinking into a soft, warm darkness...

_"The day the squirrel went buzzerk in the _  
_First Self-Righteous Church in that sleepy little _  
_Town of Pascagoula. It was a fight for survival _  
_That broke out in revival. They were jumpin' pews_  
_And shoutin' "Hallelujah!"~"_

"_And Hallelujah and __**gooood**__ morning to all you wonderful listeners in Burgess, from all of us here at __**Good Morning Burgess!**__ That was Ray Stevens with T__**he Mississippi Squirrel Revival**__, and if that squirrel didn't wake you up then don't fret! We got ourselves plenty of more music to wake you up on this __**beautiful**__ Saturday morning! But first the weather-"_

The radio was silenced with a sharp _snap_, as Kozmotis Pitchiner smacked his hand down on top of it, muttering a string of curses to himself as he rolled over to turn his back to said radio. He was so certain that he had turned off the damn machinery, since he had planned on sleeping in this morning. Bah, he had probably left it on out of sheer habit; When you had been in the military long enough, some habits were hard to break, even though a couple of years of retirement had allowed him to at least get rid of the habit of jumping straight out of bed when it wasn't necessary, like on a Saturday morning.

_'I really should write them down in that dream journal, like Sanderson suggested.'_ Kozmotis thought idly to himself. _'Before I forget it or something...'_ But the bed was so very comfortable, and it wasn't as if it had been very important. Even now, as he was slowly dozing off again, he could only remember vaguely that there had been something with horses, and something green...

"Papa, it's time to get up!" A voice called at sudden, breaking into the sleepy haze of his mind. Kozmotis groaned, pulling the blanket over his head. While it muffled the sounds of the outside world, he could still hear his daughter give an exasperated snort of amusement.

"I thought you military people were all about getting up, the moment your alarm went off." She chuckled.

"Not when 'us military people' are _retired._" Her father grumbled from under the blankets. "And especially not when it's _Saturday!_"

Seraphina let out a snort of amusement, before she could be heard walking over to the bed, and sitting down on the edge of it. "Come on, sleepy head." She said. "Did you forget, that you promised to meet Miss Haroom later today?"

Kozmotis grumbled something, but sighed before he sat up. She was right, of course. He had promised Miss Toothiana Haroom just yesterday, that he would come by and help at the tea shop, because they needed to get some new shelves put up.

"Alright, alright." He sighed, "I'm up." Seraphina just chuckled, before she gave him a light peck on the forehead.

"I'll put some bread in the toaster." She said, before she got up and walked out of the room. Kozmotis just shook his head and took a moment to stretch out, before he climbed out of bed and headed for the bathroom to get himself washed and shaved. It wouldn't do if he looked like some kind of hairy barbarian when he showed up at the tea shop.


	2. Chapter 2

Miss Toothiana and her six sisters ran a little teashop, that they had taken over after the death of their parents. As the oldest, Toothiana was in charge, and she ran the shop so that while it was all very professional, the shop was at the same time a place where everyone felt welcome, and almost as part of a big family, no matter who they were or where they came from. At least, that was the impression Kozmotis got when he first met Toothiana, when he and his daughter had moved to Burgess only three years ago.

"Good morning, Mr. Pitchiner!" One of the sisters greeted Kozmotis, as he arrived at the shop. "Tooth is in the back. Shall I go get her?"

"No thank you, I'll find my way there myself." Kozmotis said with a friendly smile, before he headed for the pearly curtained doorway that would lead to the back of the shop. A small form burst through the doorway without warning, and slammed into Kozmotis, causing him to let out a hard 'oof!' before stumbling back.

"Lakhi!" The sister exclaimed in a hard tone. "What have we told you about running through the shop!?" She quickly gave Kozmotis an apologetic look, "I am so sorry Mr. Pitchiner."

"It's quite alright, I was more surprised than hurt." Kozmotis assured her, before smiling down at the little girl who had run into him. "Hello there, Baby Tooth."

The little Indian girl glowered, before she stuck out her tongue at him. "Only my friends can call me that!" She exclaimed, before she quickly took off running. Her older sister let out an angry gasp, and shouted something in Hindi after her about coming back this instant to apologize.

Kozmotis just shook his head with a small smile. "Don't worry about it, I have to get on her good side at some point." He chuckled, before he with a small wave continued on his way to the back.

Toothiana was sitting on the floor amidst wooden boards and small bags of nails and screws, frowning as she looked over what looked like an instruction manual. When she saw Kozmotis, her face brightened in a wide smile, before she got to her feet. "Good morning, Kozmotis!" She exclaimed, "I'm so glad that you could come." She shook her head woefully, holding up the instructions, before gesturing at the mess. "This is supposed to become a new storage shelf that I'm going to put in the teashop, but I can't figure out heads or tails of this!"

"Well, my dear lady, I shall do my best to see if I can be of any assistance." Kozmotis chuckled, before he accepted the papers, and began to look them over.

He could understand her confusion the moment he began to look over the instructions.

"Uhh Tooth? Did you by any chance order this stuff through an international website? Because these instructions are in a language I can't understand at all."

"I think they're supposed to be Finnish." Tooth replied, before giving a frustrated huff. "So I thought I would try and just go by the drawings."

"Ah. Well, let's start over from the beginning." Kozmotis flipped the manual over, making certain he was starting over from the beginning. "It shouldn't be too hard to figure out. Let's start from the beginning, by making sure we got everything we need."

"That shouldn't be a problem?" Tooth looked down at the bags. "I mean, I haven't opened any of the bags, but it looks pretty organized."

"Ah, but there's the trick." The other said. "It can _look_ organized, but that doesn't mean it is. Let's open the bags and count up the different things. If we're missing something, then I've brought extra in my toolbox."

Tooth chuckled at that. "See, this is why I ask you for help, Kozmotis." She said warmly. "You're always so prepared with this kind of thing."

"Just doing my job." Kozmotis replied with a wink.

It was a good thing that Kozmotis had agreed to come in early, because the sorting of the different screws and bolts took at least an hour, not including the time Tooth took to quickly get some extra bags they could sort them into, and thereby keep things separated. When they finally got started, the best Tooth could do, was to help with trying to decipher the manual and to hold things in place while Kozmotis worked with his tools, which changed between an ordinary screwdriver, and an electric one.

By the time lunch came around, they had gotten the basic parts in place. For now, the whole thing looked like an oblong brown box with lots of holes in it.

"It's going to look great when it's done." Tooth said with a smile, as she and Kozmotis took a break in the kitchen. "Nicholas said he'd bring some panels for it, that can be put on as well, so that it doesn't look too boring. Other than that, I'm going to have it painted." She pondered for a moment at that. "Do you think Seraphina would help with that? She's got such a wonderful talent for painting."

"I'm sure she'd be happy to." Kozmotis chuckled, as he sipped on his tea.

The rest of the work on the shelf, was something that could be done without help from Tooth, so she went out to help in the tea shop. When the door was closed out to the shop, it felt oddly desolate when Kozmotis had no one but his own company, especially since the music from the radio in the tea shop couldn't be heard.

_'Ah well, I've managed that sort of thing before.'_ Kozmotis thought. After all, it wasn't as if there had been any radios on Qarali-7 when he had been stationed there and-

He paused. _Qara-whatnow?_ That couldn't be right... No, it had been...

"_Qal'eh-ye Now.*_" Kozmotis said out loud to himself, giving a slight snort of laughter. And there hadn't been a radio, because a dune walker had stepped on it-

Not a dune walker,_ a camel!_ God, he was really mucking about with his thoughts today.

"You got up to early, old man." Kozmotis said to himself. "And you've been watching too much sci-fi." That was the only explanation he had for now with the odd names for now. What else could it be?

Luckily, he didn't have to speculate more over it, as one of Toothiana's other sisters came out with a cup of tea for him.

* * *

A/N: * Qal'eh-ye Now is a village in Badghis Province in north western Afghanistan


	3. Chapter 3

Burgess had its share of colorful characters, and in the span of just the three years Kozmotis and Seraphina had lived there, they had gotten to know a couple of the more friendly ones.

Or most of them anyway.

E. Aster Bunnymund was one of the few people, next to Tooth's sister Lakhi, who had apparently made the decision at once, that he did not like Kozmotis for some reason. And while Kozmotis couldn't figure out why, as he certainly couldn't remember ever having done anything to offend the man, he eventually decided that you couldn't make friends with everyone, and simply ignored whatever nasty glares he felt coming in his direction whenever he went outside, and Bunnymund was tending to his garden or greenhouse.

It was an entirely different story however, when it came to his two other neighbours.

First, there was Sanderson Mansnoozie. He was a childrens author and illustrator, and had won a couple of awards for his works. In his own sign language, he had told Kozmotis of how he had moved to Burgess years ago, specifically after an accident that had robbed him of his voice. A nerve damage to his upper spine, he had explained. His vocalchords were fine, but his brain simply couldn't remember how to speak. It didn't really matter though, he then added when Kozmotis expressed his sympathies. He didn't need his voice in order to write and paint.

And then there was Nicholas St. North. A mountain of an enormous Russian, he was loud and boisterous to the point where Kozmotis almost felt half deaf and completely disoriented, after North gave them a very warm welcome to the neighbourhood on one of their first days in Burgess, much to Seraphinas amusement.

North was a retired toymaker, though as he liked to say, you never really retired from doing something you loved. This, as Kozmotis had learned quickly in their first year, included participating in the bigger Christmas event, where North dressed up as a perfect figure of Santa Claus. If anything, with his kind and warm demeanor, Nicholas St. North was one of the best men for the job, as he always made certain to include some of his own hand-made toys among the other presents, that were handed out to the different families at the event.

It had a big influence on how Koz and Sera came to see Burgess as their home. Especially since North practically "adopted" them both, and in this way got them more involved with the neighbourhood community.

This was also how the Pitchiners eventually had been introduced to Toothiana and her sisters, and of course Jackson Overland Frost.

Jack was apparently a nephew of some sort to North, or he had been randomly adopted by the burly Russian. Neither North or Jack never really clarified, but Kozmotis had come to trust North's instinct, so he decided to trust Jack as well. He was a bright kid, who did well at school, and he and Seraphina got along like a house on fire. Kozmotis figured he should probably have gone into some kind of protective mode, but as he told Tooth, when she asked later for some reason, he knew that Sera could take of herself. She was wise beyond her years in a way that sometimes made Koz nervous, but Jack had proven early that he had a way of keeping his feet on the ground (and that was despite his flighty attitude). And he knew how to make Sera laugh, which was a huge achievement, considering how serious she was for a girl her age.

It made a lot of things easier, such as getting used to the thought of not having to move, based on the whim of the military. And while Jack's questions about Koz' military career sometimes bordered on the intrusive, Kozmotis felt like he could get along with the boy, just as well as his daughter.

"So why did you leave the army?" Jack asked one evening, while staying over to do homework. "'Phina says you had an accident?"

Kozmotis snorted at that. "In the abridged version, I suppose you could call it that." He said, "though I'm not sure you'd want to hear the full story." He smirked a bit at that. "Might give you nightmares."

"Oh now I _know_ I gotta hear this story!" Jack retorted with a grin. "So spill the beans, old man! What happened?"

Kozmotis opened his mouth to respond... And then he paused, frowning slightly.

"I... That's... That's odd." He said slowly, just as Seraphina came in with a tray of snacks.

"What's odd?" She asked.

"...Sera, do you remember how I got discharged?" Her father asked, looking to his daughter with a bewildered expression. "It's strange, but I just don't remember. Even though I know I should!"

"What brought this on?" She asked, raising a brow.

"That... Would be me." Jack said hesitantly, looking worried. "I was just curious about how he'd gotten injured, but I had no idea this would happen!"

Seraphina gave Jack a long searching look, before she slowly shook her head, before looking to her father. "I was never told the full details... I only know they said you were caught in a blast from a missile, while you were visiting that base in Iraq for inspection. The doctors told me, that they worked on you for what felt like forever, and they were close to losing you, because the shrapnel was so close to your heart." She scowled, shaking her head in distaste.

"I was so angry... Because you had promised to stay safe, and I felt like you had broken that promise."

Kozmotis, still frowning, nodded slowly. "...I think I remember now. Or some bits, at least." He said slowly, before he gave Jack a crooked smile. "She didn't talk to me for what felt like forever, when I finally came back home. The discharge order helped a bit, I think."

Jack snorted at that, "I can certainly imagine! You can be rather brutal, 'Phina."

"Oh hush!" Sera retorted, blowing a raspberry at Jack, before she threw a cookie at his head. Jack laughed, and threw his eraser at her in response, which she managed to dodge, before she quickly set the tray down on a nearby table and chased after him, when he took off running.

If either of them noticed Kozmotis' thoughtful frown, as he tried to digest the little information he'd gotten from this conversation, they chose not to comment on it.

-

_He stood on the deck of the Tsar couples once proud vessel, with the fearlings and Dream Pirates cackling around him. Soon, he would achieve his goal. He would finally-_

"No."

_He frowned, looking to the source of the voice. Instead of the Tsar and Tsarina, trapped in the grasp of his loyal shadows, there stood a familiar looking young woman in a billowing green gown, frowning at him sternly._

_Much to his own surprise, the shadows __**growled**__ at her. The woman ignored them however, just as a small, golden figure appeared next to her, the light that surrounded it both warm and blinding... Around him, the shadows shrieked in rage, forced to flee from the light._

_He hissed, raising his arms to shield his eyes. Gentle, cool hands touched them, feeling gentle and soothing while a woman's voice that didn't belong to the green-clad newcomer spoke to him, and when he lowered his arms to look at the owner of the voice, he could have sworn that he was looking into Toothiana's warm, violet eyes._

_"Dream..." She whispered gently._

But I already am,_ he wanted to say. Instead, he sighed softly, and sank back into the warm darkness that he had been pulled from._


	4. Chapter 4

Aside from being the occasional handyman, Kozmotis spent a lot of his time with writing books on Military history, which included both the American as well as the assorted branches of European military. The good thing about Burgess, was how it had just about everything, which included a publisher, who Kozmotis would meet with when it came to his books.

Of course, convenience wasn't everything. And sometimes Kozmotis found himself wishing that something would happen, so that he had an excuse to get out of town for a bit.

He figured it was partially old habit that kept him wanting to go, while partial guilt kept him from asking Sera if they should go somewhere. They had moved from place to place when she was little, and she was finally feeling settled after moving to Burgess for school. And then there had been that talk the other day about his discharge. He had forgotten how much that had rattled her, because of how said discharge had happened. She was hopefully not too hard on Jack for having asked about it. Poor kid had only been curious, after all.

But still, it didn't hurt to just look at things like travel websites, right?

He sometimes wished he could talk about it with his neighbours, but he wasn't certain they would understand. North had talked about travelling a lot in his youth, but having lost the urge as he got older. And Sanderson was too comfortable with just staying where he was, being completely fine with the comforts of easy access to his own publisher, and the print shop, which took care of the occasional prints he would send to magazines out of town.

_'Let's not get started on poor Jack.'_ Kozmotis thought with amusement, _'he might like the idea, but he's still in hot water with Sera.'_

Really though, he'd just been curious, so what harm were his questions? It had after all only been about Kozmotis, and yet Seraphina was acting as if Jack had offended her personally, which was very unnecessary.

When he told her that, Sera looked honestly surprised, as if she hadn't thought about it. Unsurprisingly, she also raised her chin stubbornly.

"He still shouldn't have asked!" She said harshly, before her father snorted and pulled her close in a hug.

"Yes yes, he shouldn't have asked, and _you_ shouldn't rile yourself up like this. You're too young to be worrying about your blood pressure." And then without warning, he blew a raspberry against her neck, earning a startled _shriek_ and a smack on the arm when she yanked away from him.

"Dad, are you _**five?**_" she exclaimed, only to have her father grinning at her.

"No I am not, and neither are you. So stop holding a grudge like one!"

Sera scowled, but a few days later, she had allowed Jack back into her good graces, and brought him home with her for a study session.

-

"Hey Tooth?"

"Hmm?"

"Have you ever thought about going on a trip?"

They were in the Punjam Hy Loo Teashop, having just finished setting up the shelves, after they had been decorated and painted properly with help from North. And now Kozmotis was relaxing with a cup of tea, while Toothiana was wandering around and tending to small things, such as wiping down the tables around the shop.

Tooth straightened up in surprise at the question, raising a brow at the other. "Well... I guess? I think everyone does that once in a while..." She said slowly. "Why do you ask?"

Kozmotis shrugged, as he absently fiddled with a random napkin. "Nothing special... I've just been thinking about it. I mean, it's one thing when you're being deployed somewhere, or you're just generally moving because of your job in the military. This... this is different, you know?"

"How so?"

"I'm not sure how to explain it..." He sighed, before sipping his tea. "I mean... I don't really think Sera and I ever really had anything you could remotely call vacation. We never went somewhere just for the sights. And it's something I kind of want to do now. It's different, when you don't have to worry about things, like hiring a moving truck, or figuring out if there's furniture you can bring or you have to leave behind... Does that make sense?"

Tooth was silent for a while, as if thinking for a moment. But then she nodded. "I think I know what you mean. I mean... I've never really gone anywhere either."

"Oh?" Kozmotis raised a brow curiously.

"I know, I know..." Tooth said with a snort, as she sat down on a stool next to him. "'All work and no play,' as Jack says sometimes. But I grew up in the Teashop, the oldest of all my siblings. I remember that my dad traveled around a lot for his own job, while mom would mind the shop with her own two sisters most of the time, and sometimes she'd go with dad."

Tooth sighed, looking towards a large poster that hung on a nearby wall, advertising for a trip to Goa in India. "They would always have all these stories, about places they'd seen, or things they'd heard... And I remember wishing so badly, that they would take us all along. But they wanted to wait until my sisters and I were old enough, or at least until I was 21, before we should go anywhere." She snorted a bit. "One of my aunts used to call their trips for _'another honeymoon'_, because most of us were conceived on all those trips, including Lakhi. They went to a place called Lakhi Nepali, and that's apparently where my mother got pregnant with her... so they figured 'yeah, why not name her after that?'" They both chuckled at that, though Kozmotis made no other comment, other than silently motioning for Tooth to continue.

"But that was the last big trip they got to go on..." She then said, frowning sadly. "We were all going to go on a big trip, when Lakhi was old enough to handle flights. But that's when the accident happened... And then it was just me with all my sisters left with the teashop, and just my two aunts to help out, at least until one of them went back to India to get married, and the other passed away... And here we are now." Tooth shook her head. "I'm sorry for just... rambling at you like that. Taking care of the teashop has just taken up all my time... I didn't even think about how I've never really had a vacation either, until you mentioned it. And the whole thing with my parents just came back to me and... I think I just had to get it out."

"I don't mind..." Kozmotis replied gently. "I like hearing things about you, even if it's just complete random ramblings like this."

Tooth snorted and blushed a bit, but still smiled a bit. "Thanks..." She sighed.

"If you could travel though..." He then asked thoughtfully, "where would you like to go?"

She blinked, then hummed in thought as she pondered the question.

"Well... My mother always told me that somewhere in India, there are the ruins of an old palace called Punjam Hy Loo, which the teashop was named after." She finally said, almost shyly. "She had so many stories about it, that... it always felt like it was another home. And I've always wanted to see if it felt like that, especially since I have never really been to India."

The other just nodded with a slight smile.

"It sounds beautiful." He agreed.

-

It had gotten much later than he had planned, as Kozmotis headed home, first from talking with Tooth, and then going to talk with his publisher, which had dragged out because the cover for Kozmotis' next book just didn't fit. If anything, Kozmotis had disliked the initial ideas, because the designer couldn't seem to do proper research to save his life, and since Kozmotis' books were based on actual history and not fictional, would it really be so hard to investigate proper Cossack uniforms from the 18th century? It had drawn out until it was very late, and everyone else had gone home, and they had eventually decided that the cover would be changed the way Kozmotis wanted it. Mostly because it was his book, so he had the final say.

If anything, Kozmotis thought, he could be glad that things were getting lighter, as spring turned to summer. The days were much longer, so while it was relatively late, there was still plenty of light.

Which was why it was still such a shock to Kozmotis, when the horse suddenly appeared as he turned the next corner.

It was huge, and for a moment, it could almost be mistaken for a Friesian. _But no_, Kozmotis found himself thinking, _it's not._ It was something else entirely... something that felt _off._

At first, he thought about just going around it. It wasn't doing anything, except moving its head ever so slightly while watching him. But still... there was something about it that just... made him want to go closer to it.

"Easy... Easy, girl..." He found himself saying, though he was a bit glad that no one else was around, or else he might have felt stupid. "Easy... I'm not going to hurt you."

The horse, so beautifully black, it almost seemed to shimmer in the twilight. And its eyes... when had there ever been a horse with such beautiful, golden eyes? It snorted softly as Kozmotis came closer, stretching out its own neck as he reached out to touch its muzzle-

And there was suddenly a sharp _**'beep beep!'**_ that nearly made Kozmotis jump out of his skin. He spun around, only to find himself face to face with Sanderson, seated on a bright yellow scooter. The smaller man smiled, signing to Kozmotis to ask him if he was okay.

"I'm- I'm fine, you just startled me!" The other replied with a slight huff. "It's just, there's this horse-" he turned to look for the animal-

Only to find that it was gone. Kozmotis blinked in confusion, before he frowned.

"...That can't be right," he said slowly. "There was a horse... a big black one! Sandy, didn't you see it?"

The smaller man frowned, shaking his head, before he signed again. _'I'm sorry, but I didn't see a horse. You were just standing there, and that's it.'_ When Kozmotis gave him a disbelieving look, he just shook his head and signed again. _'Perhaps you are tired? Long day?' _

"...Yeah. Yeah that might be it." Kozmotis said slowly. "I just could have sworn..."

Sanderson gently tugged in his sleeve, so that he could see him sign. _'We always see weird things, if we're very tired. Want me to drive along with you? I'd offer a ride, but my scooter only fits one, I'm afraid.' _

The other snorted a bit. "Yeah, I don't think my long legs could fit. But sure, I'd like that." Sanderson smiled, and took a moment to kick his scooter properly into action, in order to turn it around.

For the faintest moment, Kozmotis thought that despite the racket from the scooter, he heard the sound of something, like dry leaves blowing across concrete. Or sand, being gently poured over rough stone. But when he looked back towards where the horse had been, there was still nothing. The sun itself had seemed to come out for a moment, leaving almost a golden sheen across the road.

_'You're just tired. It was just the shadows playing tricks on you.'_ Kozmotis thought, shaking his head, as he followed Sanderson who waited patiently for him.

-

_**"They are becoming more daring."**__ A woman's voice said. It was the woman clad in green, and she did not look happy._

_A giant rabbit was sitting with his arms crossed, scowling. __**"Yeah well, what can ya expect? With all his talkin' about travel when he's supposed t' be stayin' in Burgess. Tha' sort o' nonsense is untangling things."**_

_**"Would that be so bad though?"**__ A smaller woman said, and he could have sworn she looked familiar... __**"Having him go other places, I mean. Wouldn't it be better, if not more effective, for his mind if it was allowed to expand in some way?"**_

_A boy in a blue hoodie was watching things silently, before he shook his head. __**"I'm kind of with Tooth. I mean, if I couldn't get around, I'd probably go stir crazy."**_

_**"No. Burgess is where he fell, and so that is where he shall heal."**__ The emerald clad woman said sternly. __**"It is the only way the healing magic will work."**__ She narrowed her eyes, before looking hard at the rabbit. __**"It will also only work, if all of the Guardians are with him, rather than against him!"**_

_**"Wha- you can't be serious!"**__ The rabbit squawked indignantly. __**"I want nothin' to do with him!"**_

_**"You will, if he is to heal properly. Remember, Eucephalus Aster Bunnymund, you are one of the reasons that this is necessary. And you will do as I command!"**_

_He wanted to say something. Wanted to object. He felt fine, so why would he need healing? And why-_

_**Why do you look like Seraphina?**__ He wanted to ask._

_But before he could try to speak, the familiar golden man came into his view. He made a soft 'shh' motion, and then gently blew a cloud of golden dust into his eyes._

_And all went dark once more._


End file.
